Support

SUPPORT INTRO AND OVERVIEW

Dear THRIVE Viewer,

Thanks for experiencing the THRIVE journey.

I know that for all the beauty and amazing people in the film, there are also extreme conceptual and emotional challenges in what my research unveils. I know that because I am still going through them myself... and I see what it is like for my friends and family as they get exposed to the information.

I want you to know first and foremost that everyone responds somewhat differently and that successful integration begins with allowing yourself to be exactly who you are…and to feel whatever you are going through.

Some want to be alone with it at first. Others want to immediately talk it through with  trusted friends. You might be inspired, while your friend is in despair. And tomorrow your roles might be reversed. In the same way they suggest on the airplane to put on your own oxygen mask first in case of emergency, I recommend focusing on your own well being while looking to integrate and act on your expanded perspectives.

I have found that:

To thrive is to align with the torus at every level.

But what does that mean?

The levels of challenge are not endless. I want to identify the ones I have found are the key minimum sufficient ones in my life that call for serious practice to develop the skill required to thrive.

1) The most obvious is to be living in a healthy and supportive body. This means to learn to relax, to eat well and to keep fit. There are countless alternative ways to do this that include exercise, sports, martial arts, yoga, dance, hiking etc.

2) The next is to learn to clear and align our emotional body. When we relax our physical body, it allows suppressed emotions to begin to emerge so we can experience them in a way that restores a clear and flexible flow of feeling. This is addressed in the “Cycle of Emotions” video (link) and exploration with a skilled practitioner is recommended.

3) A still subtler level is for each of us to learn to align with the natural flow of our mind. This involves clarifying the distinction between our intellect and our intuition – the rational figuring it out and the innate inner guidance sensing, knowing. It takes us into territories like meditation, relaxed intention, noticing distracting and untrue thoughts and letting them go, thinking critically and affirming our desired future. There are abundant excellent teachers in each of these areas.

In my experience the more skillful we get at aligning physically, emotionally and mentally with the natural (toroidal) flow, the more our inner essence, our spirit can flourish.

As we realize that we belong and that we are each unique and tapped into limitless power, the question naturally arises, “So what to do with all that energy coursing through me?”

I believe that each of us, like every other form of life, is an expression of purpose. As we discover and align with our natural purpose (which, like every other enduring dynamic, is toroidal in nature) we experience increased love, energy and fulfillment. To watch a clip on the “torus of purpose”, click here.

And along the way in fulfilling your purpose, the health of our systems require us to gain mastery in:

Balancing the personal, social and work areas of our lives. This THRIVE on-line guide can help you build this skill.

As we look to join our actions with others, we inevitably run into disagreements and conflicts, even within ourselves - as we relate to our own feelings and thoughts. This THRIVE course looks to provide the key distinctions and communications skills that can empower us with nurturing and effective relationships.

I know for me, I am much more impactful and make better decisions when I am connecting with and working in collaboration with other individuals and organizations. Check out the THRIVE RESOURCE TREE  to find connections in the areas of your focused interests and activism.

In addition, I have found certain key OPERATING PRINCIPLES for being effective while thriving:

• making sure my goals are aligned with my purpose

• that I interact with integrity

• that I produce results through clear requests, promises and agreements.

• I am committed to Non-aggression,

• I look to become ever more skillful at forgiveness – starting with myself.

• I recognize authentic acknowledgment as part of the lifeblood of relations and teamwork.

• And I try to make a point of celebrating completed goals, the love we share and the gift of life     itself.

Learning to quiet the noise in my mind and to amplify the signal of my Inner Guidance helps allow my thinking, speaking and acting to operate as one.

This is the dynamic of wholeness, of love, of thriving.

EXPLORING YOUR PURPOSE

In my experience, it saves vast amounts of time and energy to clarify one’s purpose in life, especially as we ask ourselves “What Can I Do?” in the face of our dire predicament as a species on Planet Earth right now.

Many people wonder if there is any purpose at all to life.

Arthur Young was the one who pointed out to me that there is nothing in life which exists except as a function of purpose!

The universe is a process put in motion by purpose.

Arthur Young

1^st postulate of the Theory of Process

Every chair, every machine, every toy was designed and built to fulfill some purpose.

Every living thing as well is shaped and functions to fulfill the drive that motivates its existence.

It became apparent to me in my quest that even purpose itself is a toroidal dynamic.

Here is a video exploring the dynamics of what I call the “torus of purpose.”

FOCUSING YOUR ACTION

A key distinction that emerged for us in the THRIVE project is the identification of 3 main categories of activism.

Levels of Engagement

People are often drawn toward a particular type of engagement that suits their own personality, skills and current life situation. Engaging our natural styles helps us to be most effective, impassioned and sustainable in our response to the crises of our times. It’s vital to know you don’t have to do it all. There are hundreds of millions of committed individuals working hard for a better world.

Explore your purpose, consider your current style, and be part of the solution in a way that feels most personally meaningful and effective.

1) Some people prefer direct intervention with an immediate need.

(Examples: work with or donate to organizations that get food, shelter and medical treatment to those critically in need.)

2) Some are drawn to systemic change.

(Examples: consume and invest responsibly. Utilize or design alternative systems for banking, education, heath care, food distribution. Initiate or participate in Critical Mass Actions, boycotts, political action or targeted non-violent non-participation, etc.)

3) And still others prefer to address the consciousness shift that’s needed to create a world that works for everyone.

(Examples: Transform current structures to reflect a new paradigm in which they serve the well-being of everyone while violating no one. Explore the “Big Qs” and develop curriculum around them. Initiate or support rigorous and leveraged research, reports, books, films, workshops etc.)

We suggest combining this personal assessment with your choice of which Sector or Topic you feel most skilled at and/or drawn to, and beginning to focus your actions at that intersection.

Examples:

If your interest and expertise is in the area of Environment and your natural level of engagement is systemic change, you could work in your region or at the national level with an organization that is working to ban pesticides or GMO contamination.

If your interest is or expertise is Health, and shifting consciousness, you could be writing articles or creating YouTube videos that expose the dangers of mandatory vaccines and promote holistic awareness of our mind/body connection.

SUPPORTING EMOTIONAL WELL-BEING

Emotion is a key aspect of the life force – that which “motivates us.” Our feelings can seem wild and dangerous - sometimes overwhelming. But like whitewater rapids in a river, they can be navigated successfully if it is done with humility, understanding and skill.

"We must be careful not to make intellect our God - it has powerful muscles but no personality."

- Albert EinsteinTreated with respect, our emotions can fuel our activism with passion and commitment. Treated carelessly, they can de-rail our alignment with purpose and disrupt our well-being and our partnerships. Emotions follow natural principles like anything else, so when we become aware of predictable energy dynamics in the realm of feelings, we can blend with them and lead them to balance and higher energy states.

Here is a video that lays a groundwork for the understanding that emerged for me from my own personal quest and from teaching Interaction Dynamics to thousands of people.

Perhaps now that the Western Sciences have reached down into the atom and out into the cosmos finally to realize the extreme vulnerability of all life and value, it is becoming credible, even obvious, that the Inner Science is of Supreme importance. Certainly physics designed the bombs, biology the germ warfare, chemistry the nerve gas and so on, but it will be the unhealthy emotions of individuals, the fear, the hate, the jealousy of individuals that will trigger these horrors. These emotions can only be controlled, reshaped, rechanneled, by successful Inner Science.
     - His Holiness Tenzin Gyatso, the Dalai Lama of Tibet

Relating harmoniously with our feelings is a key part of resolving conflict and building trust – within ourselves and with others. Any partnership or organization is going to face the challenges of breakdowns in communication. The next section expands our skill base beyond our emotions to explore how to listen, speak and take action with effectiveness and joy.

COMMUNICATING & RESOLVING CONFLICT EFFECTIVELY

I applied what I had learned from practicing Aikido to my relations with myself and others and eventually became a conflict resolution facilitator for couples, families and  schools as well as corporate teams. For fifteen years I led programs called Interaction Dynamics. Here is a link to a guidebook for that course for those who are interested. It is more effective with intensive coaching on the different concepts and skills, but you can still get some key distinctions from working on it yourself.

I have not lead communication workshops in many years, but for those interested in how to resolve conflict harmoniously, I have been impressed by the quality and effectiveness of Nonviolent Communication programs, initially created by Marshall Rosenberg. I recommend you check them out to improve your own communication skills and better your relations.

http://www.cnvc.org/

KEEPING YOUR LIFE IN BALANCE

It is all too common for committed researchers, activists and consciousness explorers to become so consumed by their projects that their health, well-being, relationships and effectiveness all suffer. Out of necessity in my own life, I began creating tools and techniques to help keep my life as balanced as possible. Friends asked me to share what I found with them and these eventually became the core of a course I taught at the MindCenter in Silicon Valley. This is being updated for posting on this site.